The Big Carlos Pass drawbridge, on the south end of Fort Myers Beach, gets a test run by bridge tender Lou Brell on Tuesday. / Andrew West/news-press.com

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Bridge condition terminology

• The term “structurally deficient” means that the department believes a bridge should undergo a series of repairs or replacement within the next six years. The state’s policy is to repair or replace all the structurally deficient state-owned bridges during that time. The department also recommends that local governments follow the same schedule for their structurally deficient bridges. • The term “functionally obsolete” only means that a bridge does not meet current road design standards. For example, some bridges are “functionally obsolete” because they were built at a time when lane widths were narrower than the current standard. • The health index is a tool that measures the overall condition of a bridge. The health index typically includes about 10 to 12 elements that are evaluated by the department. A lower health index means that more work would be required to improve the bridge to an ideal condition. A health index below 85 generally indicates that some repairs are needed, although it doesn't mean the bridge is unsafe. A low health index may also indicate that it would be more economical to replace the bridge than to repair it. • The sufficiency rating is a tool that is used to help determine whether a bridge that is structurally deficient or functionally obsolete should be repaired or just replaced. The sufficiency rating considers a number of factors, only about half of which relate to the condition of the bridge itself. The sufficiency ratings for bridges are part of a formula used by the Federal Highway Administration when it allocates federal funds to the states for bridge replacement. Source: Florida Department of Transportation

A close up view of the Cape Coral Bridge. / Kinfay Moroti/news-press.com

Cape Coral Bridge - west-bound span / Kinfay Moroti/news-press.com

Lou Brell, one of the bridge tenders for the Big Carlos Pas bridge picks up the trash that fishermen leave behind. Lee County Department of Transportation Director David Loveland said the Big Carlos Pass bridge must be replaced 2021 because it's more cost effective. / Andrew West/news-press.com

Florida has the safest bridges in the nation, quelling fears that a bridge here could suffer the same fate as the one that collapsed in Washington in May.

And in Southwest Florida, not only are officials working on replacing aging bridges, officials say there are no structurally deficient bridges.

The assurance comes weeks after an Interstate 5 bridge collapsed north of Seattle, dumping two vehicles into the water and injuring three people. Florida bridges receive a state-sponsored inspection every two years, said Debbie Tower, spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Transportation.

In District 1, FDOT spends $9.3 million a year on bridge inspections. That cash also covers maintenance and operation of a bridge, should it have any tenders.

District 1 encompasses 12 counties: Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry, Glades, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Manatee, Okeechobee, Polk and Sarasota. There are more than 1,000 state and municipality-maintained overpasses, spans and bridges in Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties, according to FDOT.

The chances a Florida bridge will see such a devastating collapse are much lower than in other parts of the nation, where bridges are older. Newer bridges have a lot of redundancies built in to avoid catastrophic failure, said David Loveland, director of the Lee County Department of Transportation.

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He cited the crash in which a boom truck hit the underside of the Interstate 75 overpass at Daniels Parkway in November as an example. Multiple concrete beams were damaged on the northbound and southbound lanes. It lead to intermittent closures, while the overpass was repaired, but it never collapsed.

At the time of its collapse, the Washington bridge was listed as “functionally obsolete” — meaning that the design is outdated, according to a database compiled by the Federal Highway Administration. The bridge, which was built in 1955, was last inspected in November and received a sufficiency rating of 57.4, according to federal records.

Many of Southwest Florida’s bridges fall under the “functionally obsolete” category, Tower said. But she assured that it doesn’t mean the bridges are in danger of collapsing.

“The reason we can say that with confidence is because we have a very strong, very thorough bridge inspection program,” she said. “Our inspections are quite literally from top to bottom of the bridge.”

Florida ranks as the safest in a list compiled by TRIP, a national transportation research group. Only 2 percent of Florida’s bridges were structurally deficient as of 2012. Nevada also came in at 2 percent, and Texas with 3 percent.

The Caloosahatchee Bridge, which connects downtown Fort Myers with North Fort Myers, is an example of a bridge that is considered functionally obsolete. It was last inspected in February 2012, when it received a sufficiency rating of 57 and a health index 98.83. Nearly 40,000 vehicles travel on the 51-year-old bridge daily.

The health index and sufficiency rating are tools used to measure the condition of a bridge and whether it needs to be repaired or replaced. Because the Caloosahatchee Bridge’s health index score was above 85, its condition is considered ideal.

In Collier County, the northbound span of the Judge S.S. Jolley Bridge that leads into Marco Island is also functionally obsolete. That ranking doesn’t apply to the recently built southbound span.

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The bridges are ranked that way because they don’t meet today’s standards; the Caloosahatchee Bridge and the northbound span of the Jolley Bridge have very narrow shoulders. That means that when a car breaks down on either bridge, traffic will back up.

Compare that scenario to the Edison Bridges in Fort Myers: Both spans were built with wide shoulders on the inside and outside. In theory, the driver of a broken down vehicle should have the opportunity to pull to the side and avoid creating a jam. If traffic backs up, rubberneckers are likely to blame.

Due for replacement

Only a handful of bridges in Lee County face replacement: the Big Carlos Pass Bridge, on the south end of Fort Myers Beach, the westbound span of the Cape Coral Bridge and Alva Bridge over the Caloosahatchee River that carries Broadway Street, Loveland said.

Lee County has spent money keeping the Big Carlos Pass Bridge structurally sound, Loveland said. The state inspected the bridge most recently in January, and it received a sufficiency rating of 49 and a health index of 91.89.

But as the 48-year-old bridge continues to age, the cost of repairs will increase. Loveland hopes to have the bridge replaced by 2021.

As for the westbound span of the Cape Coral Bridge, which was built in 1963, Loveland estimates it will need to be replaced by 2028.

The average life span of a bridge is about 75 years, Loveland said. In Florida, bridges must not only withstand saltwater, they must also be able to stand tall during and after a hurricane.

The Sanibel Causeway — the island’s only way on and off — saw some cracking in its concrete beams and underneath the deck in the past year. Though cracking can lead to saltwater corroding the inside steel of the bridge, Loveland said the department will continue monitoring the cracking to ensure the bridge meets its expected life span.

Collier bridges

The alarming condition of one of Collier County’s oldest bridges led to its closure for repairs and the eventual creation of a bridge program, said Gary Putaansuu, principal project manager in the transportation engineering department.

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Now, Collier County uses the data FDOT inspectors collect, and re-inspects bridges with its own consultant. Four bridges are under repair or nearing completion within the county.

The replacement of the bridge on White Boulevard over the Golden Gate Canal should be completed by the end of July. The Chokoloskee Bay bridge is facing replacement during fiscal year 2014 and so are the bridges on Vanderbilt Drive by fiscal year 2015, Putaansuu said.

After that, the county intends to start replacing older bridges by 2018.

“They’re not falling down,” Putaansuu said. “We’re being proactive.”

In a post-9/11 world, releasing the details of what inspectors look for is out of the question. But engineering contractors inspect bridges from the top to under the water, if needed, Tower said. Contractors inspect the top of bridges, their support beams and divers inspect any underwater components.

The purpose of the bi-annual inspections is to give local municipalities or the state time to replace bridges when they’re wearing down. But when bridges in Florida are not considered safe for travel, they are immediately shut down, Tower said. She could not remember a bridge that has been closed because it was too dangerous to drive on in Southwest Florida, unless the closure was the direct result of a crash.

The terminology used to rank a bridge can be confusing for people. Most people assume that anything below 90 is likely not so excellent. Yet a bridge can receive a 65 in the health index and still be safe for driving. The score just means repairs are needed to keep it going.

Also, replacing a bridge isn’t the only option for updates. The state is working on adding shoulders and six lanes — three northbound and three southbound — to the I-75 bridge that crosses the Caloosahatchee River. Both spans received ratings higher than 85 on the health index and the sufficiency rating when they were inspected in March 2012.

“There’s an example: that bridge is in good shape but we’re adding capacity to it,” Tower said. “It’s smart and more economical.”